


Loser Buys Breakfast

by poisonheadcrabsalesman



Category: Doom (Video Games), Half-Life, Halo (Video Games) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Light Angst, Multi, Pre-Slash, Selectively Mute Gordon Freeman, They all need therapy, slaps armored fps protagonists you can fit so much trauma and healing in these bad boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-10
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:33:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26938210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poisonheadcrabsalesman/pseuds/poisonheadcrabsalesman
Summary: John and Guy are competitive meatheads. This leads to them making fools of themselves in public, this time at a park. Gordon is dragged along. Somehow they are still allowed out in public."They had gotten up early to make it to the park with the nature trails before everyone else. John had gotten used to leaving his helmet in the car. It had just taken a bit to get used to. The sunglasses stayed on. The mask across his face was also a comfort. He looked as normal as a 7 foot tall scarred man could at 5 in the morning at a park. At least he wasn’t Guy, who was a bit shorter but almost twice as wide. The Slayer always looked like a bull in a china shop wherever they went, despite being light on his feet and not that destructive out of combat.He looked over at Gordon, who was barely awake and leaning against the car with a coffee thermos in his hand and staring intently at something. John followed his tired gaze back to Guy. They made eye contact before pointing at Guy and signing.[Why did we let him buy that?]"
Relationships: Gordon Freeman/ Doom Slayer, Gordon Freeman/Doom Slayer/John-117
Comments: 4
Kudos: 64





	Loser Buys Breakfast

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Freeguy117 likers! This was supposed to be a short little snippet but then I kept going. Some people liked it so now it's here. More to come.

They made it to the park as the sun began its climb over the treeline. It was later than he wanted but the fact that the others came at all made him feel…something. It was nice. He could settle on nice. Labelling his emotions had been a challenge, like working a muscle he never had to use before. The other two had proven they could be trusted, and with them at his back he felt safe. There you go, chief. Nice and Safe. He could imagine the playful sarcasm in the voice in his head. If she could see him now. 

They had gotten up early to make it to the park with the nature trails before everyone else. John had gotten used to leaving his helmet in the car. It had just taken a bit to get used to. The sunglasses stayed on. The mask across his face was also a comfort. He looked as normal as a 7 foot tall scarred man could at 5 in the morning at a park. At least he wasn’t Guy, who was a bit shorter but almost twice as wide. The Slayer always looked like a bull in a china shop wherever they went, despite being light on his feet and not that destructive out of combat. 

He looked over at Gordon, who was barely awake and leaning against the car with a coffee thermos in his hand and staring intently at something. John followed his tired gaze back to Guy. They made eye contact before pointing at Guy and signing.

[Why did we let him buy that?]

John perked up a little and took notice the difference between his and Guy’s choice of clothing. They had both dressed to their comfort level from the slim pickings they had gotten from the Goodwill. John was in a long sleeve shirt and track pants that hid most of his body. Guy had gone the opposite route, and was taking off his jacket to reveal a ratty muscle shirt that was plastered with some obscene slogan and the bright neon running shorts that were a size too small.

John let out his breath through his nose, his version of a laugh, as he turned to see Gordon redden at the sight of that much skin. He wondered when those two were going to stop dancing around each other. Catching them staring at each other and awkward shuffling around their tiny apartment was losing its charm.

So what if the trip had an ulterior motive? If they were going to make fun of his face he was going to make them squirm a bit. As a friend and roommate it was practically part of the deal. He hadn’t been a wingman before but it couldn’t be that hard. John was great at thinking on his feet.  
Grabbing his bag, he motioned for the other two to follow to the trail head. There was a bench marking the entrance and a sign with the different trails displayed with information about local flora and fauna. Gordon took a seat and pulled out his phone, thumbing the screen to the stopwatch. He set his phone down on the bench next to the bag before looking over and asking the most important question. 

[Rules?]

“No shortcuts, stay on the trail, loser has to buy breakfast. Deal?” John said looking over at Guy.

“Deal.” The Slayer had a grin showing too many teeth. John returned it under his mask. 

He was enjoying their supersoldier competitions and the beleaguered expression it put on Gordon’s face. Gordon, who was happy to sit by and let them go be giant manchildren while he sipped his coffee and watched with a fond look on his face. Gordon who would also join in whenever he thought he could make it work out in his favor. It wasn’t Guy or John’s fault they were banned from three different food chains and a local bookstore. Guy was still upset about the latter since he had grown attached to the cat, Tulip, who lived there.

As John and Guy lined up next to each other, Gordon signaled for a moment before fiddling with his phone a bit more. A familiar countdown played as both of them just stared at him.

“Really?” John said, trying to sound exasperated as the MarioKart countdown played. Gordon just shrugged. 

The final chime sounded and then they were off, flying down the trail unhindered by the soft sandy soil and uneven terrain. Rocks kicked up by their steps flew in the underbrush, birdsong in the distance the only soundtrack to their race. The trail they had chosen was 5k with little elevation. Still they had to look out for roots, fallen trees, and other trip hazards John had pulled ahead by a few meters when the path narrowed and Guy struggled to dodge a branch.

John felt like he was flying for the first time out of his armor. Nothing on his mind but the race and the rhythm of his feet hitting the ground. No HUD, no mission, no constant stream on intel. Just unfiltered morning air, sunlight through the trees, and the soft curses coming from the behemoth behind him.

It was such a strange feeling to be running without the sound of gunfire or engines nearby. The green surrounding him was a comfort, yet at the same time, alien. 

When they hit the marker for the halfway point and started down a slight decline, he took a running leap and cleared a mud pit. Guy was not so lucky. Legs the size of tree trucks pistoned their way through the mud, Guy’s weight dragging him down. Scrambling out of the mess he followed John while cursing loudly.

“You gonna let this old man beat you?” John called over his shoulder. 

He was having fun with this. Most people couldn’t keep up and it’d been a long time since he’d been around anyone close to his speed. A look of surprise flashed over Guy’s face before he gritted his teeth in a manic sneer and booked it down the trail. He was gaining, fueled by the taunts into a single minded drive to win. 

The sound of super-soldiers sprinting through the underbrush was not one Gordon was familiar with. He had hoped them staying on the trail would narrow the path of destruction. That hope died when he heard Guy curse John out somewhere through the trees. He switched tabs on his phone back to the stopwatch. It had been almost 10 minutes and he was getting hungry.

It had been nice to sit and watch the sunrise, a small pause before whatever happened next. He was learning to savor the moment after having the rug pulled out from under his feet so many times. His confidence and anxiety growing everyday he spent with his new roommates. They had helped him with pointers after learning his background, or lack thereof. At least John had kept a straight face when he explained the amount of training he had received. Guy had laughed his ass off before learning that was all Gordon had to go on and still survived Black Mesa. But not without scars. 

Yeah, his roommates were strange, and kind of assholes, but they had grown on him a bit. Now if they’d only hurry up with their little game they woke him up to play referee for. 

No sooner than the thought had crossed his mind, the sound of branches crashing and a blur of green and brown and neon made him jump up, phone forgotten. 

John and Guy were on the ground, covered in mud and leaves. As Gordon moved closer to see what had happened, he jumped again when Guy shrieked. He released the hold he had around John's neck and jerked away like he had been bit.

“What the fuck!” Guy was glaring at John before he cracked and started laughing.

“What?” John’s gap toothed smile was visible as he tried to fix his broken sunglasses, mask hanging off of one ear. 

“Bastard!” Guy snapped his head over to poor Gordon who was standing out of the way, “So, who won?”

Gordon merely stared at him before grabbing his coffee and walking back to the car. John and Guy followed and when Guy pressed for the answer again he got a towel in the face. 

[Clean up before we miss breakfast hours.] He signed before hopping into the passenger seat.

John clapped Guy on the shoulder before swapping out new sunglasses from his bag.  
“Don’t worry, you can sit next to him when we get there.” John quietly said as Gordon glared at them both in the side mirror.

Guy stood there, blinking stupidly as John walked to the driver’s side door.

“Hurry up and get in, I want coffee.”


End file.
